Two small groups in the Tri-Cities plan a "Blue Lives Murder" protest 4-6PM Saturday along Columbia Center Boulevard.

blue lives murder event (Facebook)
blue lives murder event (Facebook)
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Blackformation and Luchedores por Combio-Tri-Cities are staging the event, the goal of which is to demand the disbanding of the Special Investigations Unit.

The SIU is a group of law enforcement officers who perform investigations involving officer-related shootings or related deaths and serious incidents.  According to the event page:

"Black and Brown people continue to be murdered both nationally and locally, at the hands of those sworn to protect us.
From Prosser to Connell to Walla Walla, and everywhere in between, the Special Investigations Unit is responsible for policing themselves. Where in every case officers that have been involved in murdering members of our community they have never been found to be at fault.
It is time to DEMAND that the Special Investigations Unit be DISMANTLED and replaced with a third-party investigatory firm.
Here are a list of known cases that the SIU has been responsible for: Antonio Zambrano, Dante Jones, Gordon Whitaker, Hussein Hassan, Santiago Ayala-Pineda."
      It is interesting to note that the SIU does not include members of the department involved in the incident when conducting an investigation. According to a KEPR TV News report, organizers say the event is not about spreading hate, but awareness about these situations.
However, it is also interesting to note that Blackformation has been involved in a number of the protests we have seen in our area, and the title of this event appears to contradict the organizers statements to the TV station.
 The organizers also mentioned the Zambrano shooting in Pasco, and it's also of interest that the U.S. District Attorney in our region (Federal official) decline to prosecute the Pasco officers involved, based upon their own investigation of the shooting. 
 Regarding the shooting of Dante Jones, the 1,900 page investigation, according to the Tri-City Herald, showed (forensic pathology) that the man shot and killed last November 18 was high on meth, and likely hallucinating prior to the chase which eventually led to his shooting. A Franklin County Deputy was halfway inside his car attempting to turn off his car  during a traffic stop when Jones hit the gas, pinning the officer and he feared he would be dragged under the car, so he opened fire. He had been spotted in the early morning hours, driving at speeds over 80 MPH north of Pasco.
  According to the page, as of Thursday, 46 people planned to attend. To see the event page for yourself, click on the button below.
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